Perlman Music Program Sarasota Winter Residency 2012-2013 season announced

The  ninth annual The Perlman Music Program Sarasota Winter Residency will take place Dec. 20 through Jan. 5.

Founded by Toby Perlman, wife of internationally acclaimed concert violinist and conductor Itzhak Perlman, it offers musical training for students ages 12 to 20-plus who play the violin, viola, cello, and bass. Itzhak Perlman leads the first-class faculty.

PMP/Suncoast’s winter residency is hosted in partnership with the University of South Florida, Sarasota-Manatee. The public is invited to attend more than 20 free events, including orchestra and chorus rehearsals, master classes, and works-in-progress recitals. Most of these events take place in a heated outdoor performance tent on the grounds of the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus, 8350 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota.

The general public is invited to pick up free tickets in person at the USF Sarasota-Manatee Rotunda, December 1-10. Advance tickets are available for PMP/Suncoast members and sponsors beginning in November. More information about membership and sponsorship opportunities can be found at www.PMPSuncoast.org or by calling 941-955-4942.

The program culminates with the “Celebration Concert" at the Sarasota Opera House, 5 p.m. Jan. 5. Tickets are $40, $60, $80 and are on sale starting Oct. 1 at the Sarasota Opera House’s box office at 941-366-8450. Advance ticket sales for PMP/Suncoast members and sponsors begins August 15. The “Perlman and Pearls” gala dinner event, immediately following the concert, celebrates the Perlmans, faculty, students, and PMP/Suncoast sponsors and patrons. For gala tickets and information, call 941-350-2338.

PMP/Suncoast presents the Sarasota Winter Residency as only one part of a year-round program. Now in its fourth year, PMP/Suncoast’s Education Outreach Program brings PMP alumni into area schools as professional teaching artists throughout the year. This year, the internationally celebrated Ariel Quartet will present interactive performances and hands-on training for area music students and their teachers. The Quartet will spend three weeks teaching and performing locally: November 1-7, 2012; February 21-27, 2013; and May 1-7, 2013.

This season’s program will serve 12 schools at the elementary, middle, and high school levels, and reach approximately 4,000 students, grades 5 through 12. The Ariel Quartet will also perform three free, public concerts as part of PMP/Suncoast's Emerging Artists Performance Series. Dates and venues will be announced soon. This three-week, in-school residency is entirely funded by PMP/Suncoast through grants, sponsorships and individual patrons.

The Perlman Music Program Sarasota Winter Residency is only one part of a year-round New York-based music education program of The Perlman Music Program (PMP) providing mentoring, coaching and guidance for an exclusive group of string musicians of unique and special talent chosen from applicants from around the world.

Each summer, PMP students convene on Shelter Island, New York, to participate in the six-week Summer Music School and two-week Chamber Music Workshop under the guidance of Toby and Itzhak Perlman and an equally exceptional faculty roster. Regular mentorship opportunities are offered throughout the school year for students and alumni including concert series at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Neue Galerie.

For more information about The Perlman Music Program/Suncoast, visit www.PerlmanMusicProgramSuncoast.org or call 941-955-4942.

--Photo of Itzhak Perlman in rehearsal with PMP orchestra students by Barbara Banks.